Construction of buildings



(No Model.

H. B. WALBRIDGE.

GONSTRUCTION 0F BUILDINGS.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY B. WALBRIDGE, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDINGS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 433,500, dated August 5, 1890.

Application filed November 9, 1889. Serial No. 329,753- (No model.)

To whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY B. WALBRIDGE, of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have'invented a new and use ful Improvement in the Construction of B uildings, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to an improvement in the construction of buildings, especially frame buildings, and has for its object to provide a means whereby the outer walls of a building may be rendered thoroughly water-proof and made to represent blocks of stone or other material, as desired.

A further object of the invention is to accomplish this result in a simple and economic manner, and without any of the means of attachment of the blocks to the framing of the house being visible.

The invention consists in the novel construction and combination of the several parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth, and pointed out in the claims. I

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar letters and figures of refer: ence indicate corresponding parts in'all the views.

Figure 1 is apartial perspective view of a dwelling. the Walls of which are faced in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section through the facing and wall of the building, illustrating the application of the invention. Fig. 3 is a vertical section through a seriesof blocks. Fig. 4 is a perspective'view of the casing adapted to cover a block, the View being taken from the front. Fig. 5 is a similar view taken from the rear, and Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a side tieplate.

In carrying out the invention blocks 10 of wood, metal, orother material are constructed, which blocks are preferably rectangular, but may be of any desired contour. Eaeh'blook is provided with two opposite straight edges a and a and two opposed beveled edges a and a the bevel at one edge being produced upon the outer face of the block and upon the under face at the other end, as best shown in Fig. 3.

In connection with each block a casing 11 forming ears 16, as illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5, and the said upper flange is bent longitudinally upon itself to provide a lip 17 at the upper edge of the casing, the outer face of which lip is in a plane parallel with the plane of the outer face of the body of the casing, as is shown in Figs. 3 and 4. In addition to the casing 11, a tie-plate 18 is used, bent to a U shape in eross-section.

In attaching the blocks 10 to the outer wall 19 of the building they are arranged, preferably, to break joints, as shown in Fig. 1. A block 10 is placed in contact with the outer wall of the building, and secured thereto by screws, nails, or equivalent devices passed through the outer face, the heads of said screws or nails being preferably countersunk.

In placing the blocks in position to be secured to the building the downwardly-beveled edge a is placed uppermost. After the block has been rigidly secured to place, the casing, formed as above described, is placed over the block, as illustrated in Fig. 3, and as the oasing is made to conform to the contour of the block a snug fit is obtained. The casing is held firmly in contact with the block upon which it is placed and the outer wall of the building by driving nails or other equivalent devices through the lip 17 into the said wall of the building. Before securing the casing to place each straight flange 13 is made to enter one of the U-shaped tie-plates 18. Another block is secured in similar manner alongside of the block just fastened to the building, and the casing 1s placed in position upon the block, as above described. In con nection with this second casing, however, but one tieplate 18 is employed, and that plate is used in connection with the outer straight flange 13, the inner straight flange being made to enter the tie-plate already attached to the casing of the first block attached. Thus a gutter is provided between the opposed sides of each block, and the wooden face of the building is protected against the weather, the said gutter acting to carry off any Water that may enter the space between the blocks.

In placing a block in position above a lower block the under beveled surface a or, more properly, the beveled flange 14 of the casing, is made to contact with the upwardlybeveled flange 15 of the casing below, as shown in Fig. 3. In placing the blocks side by side the ears 16 of the casing overlap, forminga continuous horizontal water-shed between the horizontal seams of the joints,

serving to conduct the water from the horizontal seams in like manner that the tieplates 18 vconduct the water from the vertical seams. Thus at both the vertical and horizontal seams the Wooden wall of the building is protected, and when the entire wall has been covered with the blocks an effective Water-proof surface is obtained. It is obvious that as the casings of the blocks cover their entire outer surfaces the means employed for securing the blocks to the building are so concealed as to be rendered invisible. It is also apparent that the outer faces of the casings may be painted, colored, or otherwise decorated in imitation of stone or any desired material.

I desire it to be understood that I do not limit myself to the use of any material in the construction of the blocks or in the formation of the block-casingsas, for instance, if inv practice it is found desirable the U- shaped gutters may be dispensed with and the gutters be formed integral with the straight side flanges 13 of the casing.

-' Having thus described my invention, I

claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. Ina facing for buildings, the combination, with a block having one edge beveled upon its outer face and the opposite edge upon its inner face, of a sheet-metal casing formed to snugly fit the face and edges of the block, substantially as shown and described.

2. In a facing for buildings, the combination, with a block having its upper edge outwardly beveled and its lower edge inwardly beveled, of a metal casing formed to the exterior contour of the block' and adapted to snugly fit the same, and tie-plates essentially U-shaped in cross-section adapted for connection with the sides of the casing, substantially as shown and described.

3. In a facing for buildings, the combination, with a block having its upper surface outwardly beveled and its lower surface inwardly beveled, of a metal casing formed to snugly fit the top, bottom,and side edges and the outer face of the block, the said casing being provided at its upper end with a lip adapted to extend beyond the block essentially in a plane with the inner face thereof, substantially as shown and described.

4. In a facing for buildings, the combination, with a block provided with an outwardlybeveled upper edge and an inwardly-beveled lower edge, of a metal casing manipulated to conform to the contour of the edges and up per face of the block, the said casing being provided with side ears at its upper edge, and a lip integral with the said upper edge extending out to the extremity of the ears, and tie-plates essentially U-shaped in cross-section adapted for connection with the side edges or flanges of the casing, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

HENRY B. WALBRIDGE.

Witnesses:

J. F. ACKER, J r., O. SEneWIoK. 

